c/o Tiro from Prog Censor

“Shamall – Schizophrenia”: Prog/Electro/Rock/Classic: 77’01 / 73’27, Germany ’19.

I have to tell you right at the beginning that Shamall, despite his career of over 35 years, has disappeared under my radar. And so I find it difficult to discuss this album with a nostalgic view on it. It’s even more difficult because the album I’m to talk about to you is a gigantic work, 22 tracks for 2h31 music.

So I cannot give a detailed account of each piece, but rather an overview of this musical masterpiece, which even after more than a whole month of listening, in all it’s complexity, has not revealed all it’s secrets to me. That’s how intense the album is. Especially the title theme, which gives the albums it’s name “Schizophrenia”, would deserve it’s own review with it’s 18:55 min. In contrast to what the album title suggests at first glance, it is not the search for the center of madness to which Norbert Krüler invites us, but a sharp criticism of our society in the face of social, climatic and ecological challenges for which we remain little active or even ignorant.

This album is a real musical patchwork, bringing together 4 decades of progressive rock, to which you add electro and classical elements that make you think of the best moments of “Tangerine Dream”, and with some repetitions of themes throughout the album, which seem a bit lengthy to me, but it does make sense through the arrangements. The mixes of the tracks on this album are also of first-class quality.

It’s a long album, which might be a bit overwhelming for some listeners and maybe it would have been better for me if it had been a bit more concise. Against this background it is a good decision to take the necessary time to listen to it carefully and in peace.

Tiro
4/5